Prince Charles' Australian security scare: the 1994 incident that made world headlines | Sunrise

On January 26, 1994, Prince Charles was set to deliver an Australia Day speech at Tumbalong Park at Darling Harbour in Sydney, when David Kang fired two blank shots from a starting pistol and rushed the stage. Kang was wrestled to the ground by police as the Prince casually watched on, before returning to the lectern to deliver his speech. Kang said in court that he was protesting the plight of Cambodian refugees in Australia. He was found guilty of threatening unlawful violence and sentenced to 500 hours of community service. It was one of a number of close calls the Royals have had over the years. This story originally aired on Real Life in 1994.
Get the latest news » 7news.com.au
More from Sunrise » sunrise.com.au
Subscribe to Sunrise » 7news.link/Sun...
Subscribe to the Sunrise newsletter » 7sunrise.link/N...
Connect with Sunrise online:
Facebook » / sunrise
Twitter » / sunriseon7
Instagram » / sunriseon7
#SunriseOn7 #PrinceCharles #RoyalaFamily #7NEWS

[@pacoramirez7363]

Attacker: *fires shots Prince Charles: “I BEG your pardon!?”

[@minty-beats]

I beg your parliament

[@Spud500]

The prince should have just turned to him and say something like shoot me next time or something funny

[@judybrown1810]

William will be here in a moment you can talk to him

[@bounsmithbuster4761]

Ahahahaha spot on .. im dying of alughter now rewatching it with your comment in mind

[@thfreakinacage]

British af!!

[@Hahaczyk]

he seemed more concerned about how the attacker missed both times rather than actually being concerned about the attack itself, what a lad

[@paxlz5482]

I believe they were blanks

[@MythicRealTrap]

Yea his missed terribly with those blanks. The air from the pistol did not reach the prince 🤡

[@mlongman]

@@MythicRealTrap Obviously Prince Charles would not have known they were blanks, which is the perspective he’s talking about. You’re the clown here fella 🤡

[@horsekfobster7823]

@@mlongman “Obviously Prince Charles would not have known they were blanks” so your prince wasn’t in the military? Wow he must be a 🤡 if he can’t tell the difference

[@mlongman]

@@horsekfobster7823 Oh i’m sorry is he supposed to have x-ray vision? and see that the gun wasn’t loaded? and be able to identify this within half a second of noticing the weapon from a distance? You’re a clown.

[@chishnfips877]

Guy: *shoots gun and misses* Prince Charles: Your aim can’t be *that* bad, can it? I’m completely still.

[@fullsendit292]

dude it was a starter pistol.

[@intheplums]

@@fullsendit292 what's that got to do with the price of fish

[@leinardesteves3987]

@@fullsendit292 "Im level 1"

[@fullsendit292]

@@intheplums STARTER PISTOL you know? the one that fires nothing..

[@fullsendit292]

@@leinardesteves3987 ?

[@nabi5864]

He actually seems to get more calm and relaxed with each shot

[@micolevi]

maybe he didnt wanna do his speech xD. I remember in school I used to live in a country with earthquakes and everytime I had a presentation I had this little hope an earthquake would start and class would get cancelled (it never happened tho).

[@User_Happy35]

@M L he did give the speech afterwards.

[@ratio1948]

He was calm and relaxed because they were blanks. Not actual shots.

[@charlessomerset9754]

Damn. Charles was adjusting his cufflinks like he was about to sit down to dinner. Respect.

[@jonah.donohue]

Underrated

[@chellyjelly7963]

☠️☠️

[@PavlovMonocast]

They are highly trained, by special forces and he is ex service man, to become king in England you kust serve in Army. He probably knoweth that is blank shot.

[@Mauser_.]

The man was NOT after the prince. At 00:32 he intentionally and forcefully attacked the podium. He clearly hates plastic and wants it to suffer 😂

[@thesource9127]

exactly my thought, wow we are genius dude.

[@left-2-write28]

@@party_worm I have to think there are smarter, safer ways of making a political statement. I have to think that even shooting blanks at a royal is a good way to get shot yourself. Thankfully, he took himself down by smashing his face into the podium.

[@ManDrinkingMilk]

It was all motivated by the people who want more cleaner oceans.

[@Mauser_.]

@@ManDrinkingMilk LOL

[@jholo9922]

💀

[@bizarrebunny5579]

The way he just stands there like “well this is embarrassing for you”

[@codyerickson3550]

0:23 the look of confusion and mild annoyance on his face is fucking priceless. British stoicism at its finest 😂

[@fighthighlights2201]

Bad time stamp

[@bender4055]

@@fighthighlights2201 bad right highlights

[@officialnyiyanmoehtet]

00:20

[@memethingz6004]

Why u praising a colonizer

[@JonyTony2018]

@@memethingz6004 Charles was literally born after the British Empire has already begun to disintegrate and colonisation was a thing of the past.

[@carteldruglord6915]

He was so chill

[@Hammy_tch]

@Johnathan Williams yuh

[@YoureRatharStewpidMate]

Ikr

[@percy6937]

He was used to it at this point 😂

[@jamoin4310]

Cause hes a psychopath with no real emotions or feelings at all? How do you think they had run Colonies back than?

[@neutrin0329]

“Oh no, anyways”

[@kush9030]

The assassin: *Misses shots at close distance* Prince Charles: "I'm not even mad at you, Just disappointed."

[@UDHAV79]

Copied comment

[@Faaragord]

@@UDHAV79 Copied reply

[@artflorez1568]

I'm not a fan of the Prince of Wales, but I have to say that I admire how he handled it. He barely flinched.

[@0xluffy]

That's becoz he didn't know what was happening? Hence he didn't know how to react haha 🤣

[@lolstillshane]

0:22 look at Mr Bean rushing in to save the Prince. What a mad lad.

[@djdale2800]

True, Can’t say it’s Not

[@rjcembrano]

It's actually Johnny English

[@mothmanwithinternetaccess244]

lol!

[@aim2mobile997]

Lol

[@foreverknight3448]

Johnny English

[@sammanzouri3492]

Attacker : *Fires shots King Charles : How did that noob miss me ? I’m so confused.

[@hades456]

Prince Charles was like- “ Wtf is going on? What on earth is this peasant doing on the floor?”

[@lelouchvibritannia69yearsa78]

The peasants are the ones Kings stand on!

[@itsalltoobeautiful2292]

The Royals are always cool in the face of stuff like this. Princess Anne’s response to her kidnapping attempt was legendary. Meghan Markle on the other hand.. you only need to breathe in her direction and she’ll claim she’s a victim, sue you, call your boss and demand that u get sacked.

[@chooseyourpoison5105]

Not quite true in either case. Princess Anne's low key reaction to her attempted kidnapping was mainly due to sheer disbelief - I've read the account by her bodyguard, Ian Ball, who was shot in the chest - and, as he says, nobody at the scene really realised what was going on because that sort of thing just didn't happen back then. Meghan Markle, by contrast, lives in our time where violent attacks happen on a daily basis. She received several very credible threats from right wing white supremacist groups, who also threatened baby Archie. MI5 themselves advised MM to take the threats seriously, and they ought to know.

[@craigcraig6638]

A gentleman will walk but never run

[@Ninnee644]

I believe that he was unfazed because given his military training he immediately recognised that the sounds were of blank shots. So he was probably calmly wondering what the point of this 'show' was. As it turns out the guy was protesting something and I think the Prince surmised as much.

[@shz241]

Bro just stood there like “did you even try bruv?”

[@suzannalytle2758]

It's a good thing he is a royal because if his life was dependant on his own response he would have been in trouble. I understand keeping your composure but he didn't seem to even register what was going on.

[@kandicebrown4436]

The Royal calm is ridicules

[@gb8376]

Someone who is without morals, has been Changing my GOOD WILL MESSAGES to portray the opposite Context! I. EXTOL OUR ROYAL FAMILY, OUR DEAR QUEEN AND THE LATE PRINCE PHILIP are the GREATEST MONARCHY THIS GREAT NATION AND THE WHOLE WORLD HAS EVER KNOWN. SUCH DIGNITY, DIPLOMACY., HONESTY And INTEGRITY, THEY EXCELL,IN ALL. SO PROUD of THEM And OUR GREAT NATION.

[@inigobantok1579]

Or he's just fed up with the drama back in the UK with Diana camilla gate and the separations

[@JNG107]

@Suzanna Lytle Why should he panic? He has literally served as a commander in the Royal Navy and Airforce. He has adequate military training. He knew the guy didnt have what it takes to kill him and he spotted his men converging on the would be assasin. Prince Charles is certainly not defenseless

[@suej9329]

@@JNG107 Well said, it bears witness to his training in the forces. Charles stayed calm and took it in his stride, he’d be up to speed with cooperating with security.

[@marieslabbert6009]

I think he just did not realise what is happening. He saw it all, but it did not register as he looked at the man slightly bemused. I am sure he felt a bit shaken a day or two later.

[@umbra9472]

Probably not since the man who was trying to shoot him was firing blanks.

[@d.g.b.nugget8446]

I‘m very positive he knew from hearing it was not a real gun, you can see it, he gets calmer shot by shot

[@darma99]

He definitely saw he's coming and fire a gun... Even it's just a fireworks any person will react, even after all his bodyguards react. he's standing there like it's another working day makes me confusing 😂

[@NiVi192]

Ok, never has a man been less impressed.

[@XqeDiosxqe]

Bloody hell, Prince Charles didn't even blinked.

[@tom_4615]

After the second shot he does a very subtle eyebrow raise as if to just say “well alright then” priceless reaction

[@ricardochavez7716]

I like how he raised his eyebrow after the second shot like you can’t be that bad at shooting right? I’m literally standing still...

[@maxasaurus3008]

Couldn’t have been more British in his response 😂

[@Vexy93]

Assassin: *shoots twice* Prince Charles: LMAO did you see that? How hilarous!

[@Hribina]

Guy: missed the shot Prince Charles: I would say your aim is cancer, but cancer actually kills people.

[@jimrockford2335]

In the face of mortal peril he shows nothing more than mild curiosity. Wow… absolutely unshakable.

[@adquilantang]

The way he reacted was like how a good number of people(myself as well) in my og of a neighborhood react when we hear gun shots, like any other day. If anything We wait to hear for any commotion or tire shreak afterwards then react accordingly. Otherwise itp nothing. He just continued with his cufflinks

[@talkupja2903]

I mean I can imagine that he knows the sound of bullets.. Brits are famous hunters lol but it was still so cool

[@matthewwilliams1709]

Dude that’s a pretty boss reaction to thinking you’re being shot at. After the first shot Charles was trying to figure out what happened. After the 2nd he knew and was like ah well.

[@SemIdeiaDeNome4]

i love how his face is not the one of a man who dodged 2 bullets, but rather the face of a man wondering how did his assassin fire 2 shots and miss both

[@Sarah-m17]

He’s still fixing his cuff links even after the shots. Never seen anyone so calm, he didn’t even flinch and the eyebrow raise after the second shot. Then just went on as normal like it didn’t even affect him. Since they didn’t know it was blanks till later.

[@PeterJavi]

If you've ever heard a starter pistol, compared to a real gun, or moreso, a real gun of that calibre, you'll find yourself quickly able to hear the difference. On top of that, most starter pistols don't look the part.

[@Sarah-m17]

@@PeterJavi he didn’t see it at first though and that’s not the point, it still would’ve been scary and he didn’t even look it when he was running towards him.. yeah he will know what that sounds like since he grew up hunting but everything’s different in those moments and situations

[@damienocallaghan2648]

How the hell did he miss from there????? A once in a lifetime chance

[@dutchvanderlinde4969]

he might be Stormtoopers veteran 🤣

[@Cassxowary]

Blanks to prove a point

[@TheBlownapart]

It was blanks. Read the description.

[@davidgreen8431]

@@TheBlownapart why did he fire blanks though?

[@timothylai5241]

@@davidgreen8431 it was a protest, sorta like a threat, not an actual attempted assassination.

[@Jeejytb]

News reporter: 1994 will forever be the day that prince Charles life was threatened Prince Charles: stand still while the two shots misses

[@Unsinkablepath]

Attacker:"shoots too times and misses" Prince:"i am not even mad at you i am just disappointed"

[@feministwitch1402]

Ok but has anyone in the history of the earth survived an assassination attempt so coolly and calmly?

[@MelaLabelle]

“I think we should learn some lessons from this.” Don’t trip next time.

[@kozukiyui7638]

I've seen this video long time ago and it always stuck in my mind how those bodyguards reacted so fast and also protected Prince Charles with their body. Today I'm here again to confirm my memory cuz I saw the video where Shinzo Abe was shot. His bodyguards reacted few seconds late and none of them surround him fast enough 😭

[@benharyo]

😢😭

[@user-zt4zr7eg6z]

They where slow. He could deliver two shots. At Japan the attacker could come way closer.

[@starsjosephfrost]

Aussie: "...future monarch..." Queen Elizabeth: "Not yet. I am not dead yet."

[@left-2-write28]

I 0ersonally enjoy the theory from Inside Job that shes a reptilian and will thus never die.

[@starsjosephfrost]

@@left-2-write28 well I don't believe that but okay

[@onlinefriend3889]

@@left-2-write28 Just because we call her Lizzie doesn't mean she's a lizard

[@mevoogle]

Elizabeth is immortal.

[@mevoogle]

@@starsjosephfrost homie was making a reference to a show

[@i.am.bikash_]

King Charles thinking: "How someone could be that bad at shooting?"

[@BillyWillyButcherBollocks]

Prince Andrew: “doesn’t sweat” Now King Charles: doesn’t flinch 👏🏼

[@user-mn3ez2kl3v]

"Excuse me do you mind not shooting and tripping on stage while I fix my cuffs?"

[@debudada]

Attacker Fire's Shots Prince Charles : SIMP

[@missbritishchick]

Charlses is thinking. "Blithering idiot" 😂😂

[@kayb2445]

I literally came here for the comments lol

[@jamvan2k]

Relax. He shot a starter pistol with blanks and wasn’t trying to hurt anyone. He was protesting the treatment of Cambodians.

[@daweller]

It was a real gun, press wants to downplay his bravery.

[@NokotanFanCentral]

@@daweller the only bravery he did was trying to send his people back, come to Australia to not be killed by their own country, only for 1 of them to try to shoot prince Charles and if succeeded, the Public would of beaten the sh*t out of the Cambodian Refugees

[@NokotanFanCentral]

@@daweller oh yeah also it is a blank, Charles worked in the military before so he knows

[@joey3495]

@@daweller no it was confirmed to be a starter gun. Absolutely no real threat. Guy got sentenced to 500 hours of community service. If that was a real weapon dude wouldve been imprisoned

[@Revolverben190]

How did he miss both shots 💀

[@matthewswann2525]

They were blanks. Pretty sure I read he had no intention of killing him just proving a point

[@albertoftasmania]

Watch the video

[@matthewswann2525]

@@myfingershavetheflu allegedly😉

[@blueberryy4702]

He was just trying to get the security’s attention. He was protesting and also he was hoping they would shoot him to protect the prince. He was suicidal, but didn’t want to kill anyone else.

[@willy_b_coyote]

Bro’s just like: “I’m not even mad, just disappointed.”

[@Natashaa_1]

His reactions are the best 🤣 love our future King 👑 🙌🏻

[@isaacthompson3600]

Someone has to I guess. I mean he was friends with Jimmy Saville but we'll let that slide I guess

[@TopoftheGlist]

Camilla, that you?

[@isaacmeraz8095]

Bold of u to assume he will outlive his mother

[@drlukas4242]

Future king? What are you talking about? The Queen is immortal. She will outlive us all.

[@rimij]

👤

[@adam909-j9p]

Bro was unfazed

[@AngelaH2222]

...and just a raised eyebrow from Charles... classic!

[@theglitchedangel6838]

Usually in assassinations when shots are fired everyone goes to protect the victim and get him to a safe location Prince Charles after the first shot just stood still

[@jukio02]

David Kang is now a Barrister, that's what I've read. He only got 500 hours of community service for trying to kill the future King. He said that he had no intentions on hurting the prince, he fell on purpose. He also had blank ammunition in the gun.

[@Aurora-qn2dx]

terrible...what lack of respect and stupidity. poor prince Charles was shocked. What swift body guards...only community service?!...gosh he deserved afew months in gaol to reflect on his immature actions and idiot behaviour.

[@johnsonpatrick80]

This was 27 years ago. Move on

[@arfansthename]

yeah, no, he got community service because he was just firing blanks (modified bullet casings that only contain gunpowder and not the bullet, usually as part of a film prop so when the gun fires, only an explosion comes out of the barrel) from a starting gun (yknow, the ones that start races) to grab the prince's attention, no intention to kill him whatsoever.

[@isaacthompson3600]

Why should he be respected more than anyone else. Not an attack, I'm just curious considering he hasn't done anything to earn his respect and being friends with Jimmy Saville shoilf lose him some respect. Whether he was involved or not, he was so close to Saville there's no way he didn't know what was going on

[@left-2-write28]

@@arfansthename its humorous to think about the possibility the guy just didnt know it wasnt a real gun, and was very confused when the gun went bang but nothing happened.

[@arfansthename]

@@left-2-write28 i get the joke but blanks are noticeably different than actual bullets

[@rolandkatsuragi]

I don't know what's more unbelievable; the comical "attack" from the shooter, or the response to said attempt.

[@human9512]

Damn.... He didn't even flinched.... Respect

[@apiwichteralapsuwan2660]

The shooter: h..he..h...he just standing there *MENACINGLY*

[@Si-mc6dl]

I love this. Shows commonality amongst us Brits and Aussies. That good old appropriate action whilst maintaining the stiff upper lip.

[@oneofthoseyoutubeusers]

-misses both shots -target looks at him like the assassin just stepped on the targets shoe -trips getting on stage -target still unphased gets shoved by security team -gets fucking swarmed by same security team and police a true master

[@Infinite-if7uq]

He used a starting pistol, no shots could be missed in the first place.

[@Bobcat205]

(BANG) (BANG) "How did you miss?"

[@nasrulaanam]

Prince Charles was so calm...... Great personality..... Lots pf good wishes ♥

[@operator_hoodie]

Charles literally watched the guy shoot like a stormtrooper and then faceplant the floor… all while (not) saying “Really?”

[@bskiez]

Clearly they said it was blanks so it was not his intention to hurt him and he served 500hrs of community service.

[@NiVi192]

So what is your point here? 🤔 We shouldn't be too strict about his innocent little stage act? I guess the media don't need to dramatize things in hindsight since nothing happened, still the target and the innocent people surrounding him can get quite traumatized by an attack. Eventhough the prince was super cool, you never know if sb.else's or if a pacemaker might go through the roof. Not to mention the heads that must've been rolling among the security personnel and hosts. Plus, the assassin seems to have been mentally unstable (at least stupid, trying to get famous by attacking a man). The next confused teenager might carry sth. seriously dangerous, or just sth. he/she doesn't know how to operate. Generally speaking, it can't seriously be possible to get that close to the next king of England even if you were just armed with a kid's laser sword.

[@bskiez]

Move along Stan. I only talk with ppl that act like they have a life outside social media

[@urMateGG]

@@NiVi192 that's a good 20 minutes that you won't ever get back

[@NiVi192]

@@urMateGG I'm not even mad, that's a good one! 😂 But I'm a writer, so don't worry, this took me about 5 or 6 min.

[@urMateGG]

@@NiVi192 fair enough. I quit writing a long time ago so ik how it is

[@infiniteblue895]

All of the police pulling the reporters from running up onto the podium 😂

[@jamesk4460]

And today the attacker is one of the family

[@alhana8293]

Wow. Very true

[@rcshadowpriest2819]

Why?

[@3-Kashmir]

@@alhana8293 Can you explain please?

[@TollyKipper]

Explain?

[@arfansthename]

@@TollyKipper dang even god doesnt know what this dude's talking about

[@andyandys5356]

Nobody mentioned it was a starters gun not a real gun

[@TheBlownapart]

@Johnathan Williams Says so in the description. He didn't want to kill him, just make a point.

[@idonthaveausernamelol]

He wasn’t even mad scared or surprised, he was just disappointed

[@karangoyal1728]

He looked at the attacker and stopped walking for him to get a better shot and he still missed him 😂😂,Charles the chad

[@Vollification]

"The natives are a bit rowdy today I see..."

[@PrettyAddict14]

His reaction was funny af I gotta respect it 😂

[@ka5269]

adjusts his cuff links, James Bond style

[@delontaerich187]

Assassin: *shoots at him* Charles: How very droll.

[@Seek1878]

*Assassin rushes stage* Charles: *adjusts cufflinks*

[@erratnicgaming8939]

But the kids behind him were so chill they must be very brave

[@xerxes4779]

Here after he became king 👑

[@user-jj4pj5xg5t]

He was just "I'm not even mad at you, I'm just disappointed."

[@themutatednut]

The assassin: *Misses shots at close distance* Prince Charles: "I'm not even mad at you, Just disappointed." 'stole this from Eren the birb'

[@hotrodd29]

No one talking about how his overpaid bodyguard was so slow to act. He Should’ve been fired not commented

[@godd3387]

The bossiest reaction to two shots fired ever

[@JustDaveIsTaken]

*Prince Charles: Im not even mad at you, just dissapointed.*

[@fawkestheplotphoenix964]

Tbh he seemed more upset about the security guy bumping into him then being shot at

[@huntinglightning3507]

You know, Prince Charles' calm demeanor is slightly similar to his Mother's, Queen Elizabeth, calm demeanor when she was shot at by a Man with a Cap Gun during the Trooping The Colour also presented in this video. I'm surprised no one has commented about that.

[@AutZeroOneGotBanned]

im pretty sure that bodyguard who shoved him did more damage than the assassinator himself

[@handofgod9386]

I never knew about this. Crazy!

[@harveyanimations8974]

Bro really said “seriously?”

[@DarkSkies72]

He tried to shoot Charles with blanks? What a dip, I was going to say, how do you miss a target standing still? It was reported that Charles was scared to walk in Diana’s funeral procession because he thought someone would try to shoot him yet he felt better that his kids were walking with him because he thought no one would want to harm them. Nothing like using your kids as a shield. Pretty risky, Charles acted like a widow that day while cheating on her and treating her like a dish rag since day 1 of their marriage. This man is a disgrace to the monarchy, a royal disgrace.

[@fullsendit292]

who cares its not even your life worry about your own dirty laundry

[@sunnex474]

@@fullsendit292 rescue operation specialist unemployment reached 100% after your comment

[@richardhruby1734]

You have no idea what went on if you lay the blame on Charles. Both Charles and Diana were cheating on each other. Diana was a wonderful person and would have definitely helped the world if she became Queen consort, but Diana knew how to manipulate the media in her favour. And even if you are cheating on someone doesn't mean you aren't sad that they die.

[@jorged06]

Any existing monarchy is a disgrace in the 21st century

[@fullsendit292]

@@sunnex474 ok

[@Vergil125]

Charles: "Well no wonder they called this place a prison"

[@donnalynnhunsbarger1678]

prince Charles has drinked his mothers immortally TEA by accident

[@Cassxowary]

Immortalitea

[@natashaalicia2.0]

Shot BLANKS... That wasn't an assassination attempt. That was something else.

[@artificialanimeuniverse5063]

Here after the egg incidence!

[@Jakeisadonny]

Security: here’s a hug. Charles: ima adjust my sleeves

[@Xhampeion]

He was like me when ppl miss their shots in COD

[@nathyatta]

There is another camera angle that shows the attacker charging the stage and firing which they don't show here. It is a much better view of how King Charles has absolute balls of steel.

[@_j_7709]

How did he even missed from there . He had one job , one mission , one chance and still he pucked up .

[@matthewswann2525]

He had no intention to kill, he was firing blanks, he was protesting about something happening to Cambodian people and no-one was listening. So he done something to get people's attention

[@Sgt_Bill_T_Co]

It's the British way.

[@JesseP.Watson]

"You know what kiddo, I once shoved Prince Charles out of my way... So you watch it!"

[@rota2265]

David Kang was actually firing blanks. This was a protest against the plight of Cambodian refugees in Australia at the time. Pretty ballsy. Probably not the way to go about it. They guy is actually an accomplished barrister now. What a turn around.

[@chooseyourpoison5105]

Yep, as a result of this incident, he got the psychiatric treatment he needed, made a full recovery and went on to lead a good life. It's just a shame things had to get to this point for him to access psychiatric help

[@1995stripey]

Why would you shoot blanks at someone are you that desperate for human contact

[@Ardjano234]

When you load the wrong bullets and stumble over a stand, you really can't do anything

[@jimbeck6613]

What is wrong with those people how could they be so nonchalant